race report: dfl.

(Photo from Erica of Amy, Erica, and Audrey after their race.)
For the first race of the year, it's a dfl.

Let's start, though, with how a race can set a girl up for failure. Because, while the men had three categories, the women had two categories. Having just upgraded to sport/cat 2, I was in the combined sport/expert, all thrown into one cat. When we lined up, I recognized several women from the Cat 1/2 UCI cross race in Iowa City, and I knew they were fast. I was the only one on the line with body fat to speak of, and they were all so... pro. (And not very friendly, I'll add.) Only one woman actually talked to me. This time when I joked about taking last, they sort of ignored me- probably because they knew it was true. We started 5 min behind the guys.

I hadn't pre-ridden the course. In fact, it was my first time on singletrack this year. It had been raining for about an hour, and during my race it started to outright pour. There were short steep climbs and tight turns all over the place, and a few nasty slick off-camber sections, but it was a fun trail, for sure. Each lap the course felt completely different, and as the rain poured on, it went from pretty ok to a deep mudslick. The first lap I was off the bike alot- I had no confidence- and by the end of the lap I had the bike patrol dude who was bringing up the rear as a riding buddy. With no sign of the race in front of me, there was no carrot, so I just poked along. No doubt if I had a train to stay on I would have been faster, but once it's gone, it's hard to drive myself.

By lap two I was getting into a groove, though, and most of what pulled me off the bike last time I just rode right over. I know how to do this! I even passed two guys. But 2/3 through that lap, the men's leaders came around me. I crossed the finish and the official said my race was over- she was pulling me- and I wasn't supposed to ride one more.

I spinned over to our tent. I almost cried. I was heartbroken. I was going to lose it, or... I got back on my bike and got back on the trail. I wasn't supposed to be out there, and conditions were getting reaaaaaly nasty and with those cross mark tires it was more ice skating than biking, but I had to. I rode slow and careful- not worth getting hurt on a dignity lap just two weeks before a marathon- and finished my third lap. I mean, after all, a few sandbaggers who had a 5 minute head start and weren't even in my race shouldn't be able to determine the finish for me, should they?

So, there you have it. DFL, though one woman only finished two laps (though faster than mine) so I'll be placed above her. The gnarly trail and mud puddles were that serious.